Congress urged to enact Conscience Protection Act

Special to the Catholic Herald

3/07/18

New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, chair of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, and Louisville
Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, chair of the USCCB’s Committee for Religious
Liberty, urge the faithful to flood Congress with emails and calls asking for
enactment of the Conscience Protection Act as part of the 2018 funding bill and
to pray for this outcome.

A decision on the Conscience Protection Act’s inclusion in
must-pass government funding legislation will be made prior to March 23.

The joint statement follows:

Increasing and fierce attacks on conscience rights regarding
abortion cry out for an immediate remedy. Nurses and other health care
providers and institutions are being forced to choose between participating in
abortions or leaving health care altogether. Churches and pro-life Americans
are being forced to provide coverage for elective abortions — including
late-term abortions — in their health care plans. Opponents and supporters of
abortion should be able to agree that no one should be forced to participate in
abortion. Congress must remedy this problem by enacting the Conscience
Protection Act now as part of the FY 2018 funding bill.

We call on all the faithful to pray and to act by emailing and
calling Congress in the coming week especially on Monday, March 12, with the
message that enacting the Conscience Protection Act is urgently needed to
protect Americans from being forced to violate their deeply held convictions
about respect for human life. Your calls and emails to your members of Congress
really do make a difference, so please act now to protect conscience rights.

Members of Congress can be reached by calling the U.S. Capitol
Switchboard at 202/224-3121 and asking to be connected with your representative
or senator. You can email and call members of Congress at humanlifeaction.org/take-action?vvsrc=/campaigns/49865/respond.